


Footsteps

by thebadwolf



Series: Revealing [2]
Category: TMNT (2007), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-17
Updated: 2017-04-29
Packaged: 2018-04-21 04:03:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 18,920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4814255
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thebadwolf/pseuds/thebadwolf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Splinter and Annie welcome their new baby. The world is full of hidden dangers and challenges. How will their little one be raised in such a world?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Four months later

 

"And that little one is why we don't go into other people's gardens," Annie said patting her stomach.

The turtles were in the Dojo with Splinter having their daily training session.

Annie had hidden in the nursery to read a book to the little one in her belly.

Don had managed to build a working sonogram machine with parts he found and a very things he had to buy. Judging by the videos and pictures he had taken she was carrying a rat. The little one had a tail and everything.

That didn't bother Annie at all. She was more curious to find out if she was having a boy or girl. All of them had looked at the pictures and it was pretty had to tell. None of them were trained to tell.

Of course Annie would be happy either way but she really liked the idea of a girl. She could tell Splinter felt the same way.

Of course it wouldn't be long before they found out. Judging by the pictures it looked like the little one would be with them soon. It was already well developed and in position. She had never expected the pregnancy to last nine months. Mixing rats and humans seemed a tricky matter.

Of course the sooner the baby came the better. She needed the joy it would bring.

She'd been cut off from the world for two weeks. Once she started to show at all she disappeared. She hadn't paid her rent in the last two months to save a little money. Her landlord was understanding but she knew he was patience was running out around the time she disappeared.

She knew her mother was looking for her. She wished she could have at least said goodbye. She wished her mother wasn't worried about her. She often saw her on the local news asking for help finding her.

"How are you doing?" Splinter voice came from the doorway.

"Fine," Annie said settling back in her rocking chair. "A little down but alright."

"I'm sorry it has be like this," Splinter said walking fully into the room.

"It's alright," she said closing the book she'd been reading.

"I need to go away for the weekend," he said walking to her side. "April and Casey need my help working on your gift. They're worried they won't finish it in time."

Annie smiled at that. April and Casey were working on some big surprise. She couldn't get anyone to tell her what it is.

"Please give me a hint," Annie said with a laugh. "A little one."

"No," he said shaking his head. "Not one clue."

"Fine," she said smiling at him. "I guess I'll see you soon. I'll call you if anything happens."

"The slightest pain and you call me," Splinter said. "There is no way I want to miss the birth of my child."

"I think it might be a little longer," Annie said.

"All the same don't be afraid to call," the rat said.

Annie simply nodded. She was so happy Splinter was worried about her but sometimes she needed a little break from it. Splinter kissed the top of her head before slipping out of the room.

As soon as he was out of the room Annie climbed to her feet. She replaced the book on the bookshelf. She walked over to the bassinet and peered inside. The soft mattress was covered with turtle sheets and a green blanket Mikey knitted.

Annie smiled and patted her stomach. She walked out of the nursery and towards the living room. She found Mikey and Don eating pizza in the living room.

She needed some air. She hadn't been out of the lair in two weeks. Splinter was to scared of her going out into the sewers while pregnant.

"I'm going out Mikey," she said. "Don don't call your dad and tell on me please."

"Splinter will freak out if he knew," Mikey said.

"I'll be careful," Annie said putting on her jacket. "I'll even bring my cellphone."

"Be careful," Don urged.

Annie nodded before walking out of the lair. The sewer was full of water. It was high enough to start sinking into her boots. She didn't care. It was nice to be out of the lair.

She was careful as she took turns down the dark passages. The last thing she needed was to get lost. She was getting pretty good at finding her way in the dark.

That's when she heard it.

Heavy Footsteps in the dark.

Annie paused and listened to the footsteps. Whatever it was wasn't trying to hide. It was slamming through the water. Suddenly the footsteps stopped. Annie could hear it breathing in heavy.

"Damn rat," it said. "Wondering around my sewers."

The being took a deep breath before moving on.

Annie waited a few minutes before slowly heading back to the lair. She needed to get back there. There was no way she was telling the turtles or Splinter. If they knew they would never let her out of the lair again.

Whatever this thing was thought she was Splinter. He didn't attack her. He walked away. So he wasn't a threat was he?

She didn't want to risk it.

Annie opened the door to the lair and stepped inside. Mikey and Don were watching TV with the empty pizza box between them.

Don turned his head when he saw her enter.

"You weren't gone long," he said. "Everything alright?"

"Yes," Annie lied. "Just tired."

Don frowned. He could tell she wasn't telling the truth. Don wasn't one to push her about anything. He simply turned to face the television.

Annie walked into her and Splinter's bedroom. She laid down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. There was something out there. Was it another mutant? The turtles and Splinter never mentioned any other mutants. 

She shivered at the thought. She couldn't help be imagine what was hiding in the shadows. A million different ideas were going through her head.

The baby gave a little kick distracting her from her thoughts.

"It's alright little one," she said touching her stomach. "Let's get some sleep."

She crawled under the blankets and put her head on Splinter's pillow. She was so tired out of no where and needed to sleep. She was asleep almost as soon as she closed her eyes.

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

Don couldn't sleep that night. He was completely put off by Annie's behavior. She seemed scared when she came back from her walk. She was practically shaking. Mikey didn't seem to notice but he wasn't the observant of people.

After his brothers went to bed Don lay in bed for a while before he finally got annoyed. He went into the living room to read a little. He was in the middle of reading a book about new born babies. He wanted to know everything there was to know before the baby came. He had barely opened the book when he heard it.

Low groaning filled the air.

He closed the book and sat it on the coffee table. He got up and walked towards the noise. It seemed to be coming from Splinter's bedroom. He opened the door and peeked in.

Annie was lying in the bed and seemed to be in pain. She was groaning and twisting. Her breath was coming in fast burst.

"Annie?" he asked stepping inside. "Are you alright?"

Her eyes fluttered open a couple of times before opening all the way. She tried to sit up but found it too painful. She collapsed back to the bed. Fear gripped her. Her child was on the way. It was too soon. She wasn't ready.

"Call Splinter," she said. "I think this kid is coming. Come right back here. I need you to...."

She was cut off by a wave of pain. She cried out and closed her eyes.

Don quickly ran out of the room and to the phone. He picked up the receiver and pushed in the number as fast as he could. It rang out and went to the answering machine. No doubt they were all asleep.

"Dad!" he cried into the phone. "You've got to get home. Please someone pick up the phone. I think Annie's having the baby."

He barely had the sentence out when the phone was picked up.

"Donatello," Splinter's voice filled his ear. "I'll be right there. She is bound to be grinding her teeth. The guard she bought is in the bedside table. Make sure she has it. I'm bringing April. Tell Annie to try and relax. We'll be there soon."

Don hung up the phone and raced back to the bedroom. He opened the bedside table and found her mouth guard.

"Splinter and April are coming," Don explained. "They're coming as fast as they can."

"Time the contractions," Annie said taking her mouth guard. "I'm bound to have one anytime."

Annie put the mouth guard in her mouth and tried to relax. Even between the contractions she was still having mild pain. She needed Splinter. She needed him there holding her hand.

Before she was ready she felt a pain rip through her body. It felt like the worst cramp she had ever had. She cried out and bit down on the guard.

"Eight minutes," Don said. "Is there anything I can do."

"Stress ball," Annie said the best she could around the mouth guard. "Don't you have one?"

"Yes," he said and quickly ran out of the room.

On the way to his room to fetch his stress ball he ran right into Mikey.

"What the hell?" Mikey asked banging into the wall.

"Annie is having the baby," Don explained. "Splinter and April are coming. I have to get something."

He quickly rushed past his brother and into his room. He grabbed his two stress balls off his dresser. By the time he got back to Splinter's room Mikey was inside holding her hand.

"Here," Don said handing her the two balls.

She quickly dropped Mikey's hands to take the two balls. She began to squeeze them. It made her feel a little better.

"Maybe you shouldn't be in here for this Mikey," Don suggested.

"Why not?" the youngest turtle asked.

"Things might get a bit...graphic in here," the purple clad turtle explained.

Annie spit the mouth guard out and took a long deep breath.

"Damn that guard makes it hard to breathe," Annie explained. "It'll still be a few hours before this gets bad. Child birth takes a while." Annie explained.

"I'll get you some water," Don said. "You look like you need it."

Don hurried out of the room after the water.

"I have a question," Mikey said. "I'm sorry if it seems stupid."

"Go a head," Annie said grunting through the pain.

"If it hurts this bad why do women have kids?" the young turtle asked.

"Oh Mikey," she said smiling slightly. "This hurts and it's going to get worse but I don't regret getting pregnant. Holding that baby is going to be worth it. You don't need to be in here if it bothers you."

"Thanks," Mikey said with a smile. "This whole thing is kind of freaky."

Mikey left as Don was coming in with her water. He helped her drink it and sat by her side. He really hoped his father would hurry. There was no way he could deliver a baby by himself.

\---

It felt like forever before April and Splinter got there. The weather outside had taken a serious turn for the worst. It was raining heavy and the sky was lite with lightening. The sewers was flooded pretty badly.

Don had made adjustments to the sewer around the lair so that the lair wouldn't flood. That didn't stop their path from becoming flooded.

When April and Splinter finally stepped inside the lair they were soaking wet. April hung up her rain slicker and Splinter tried to shake dry. Droplets of water landed on the floor and walls.

Leo, Raph, and Mikey were sitting in the living room. There was a movie playing but they didn't seem interested in it. 

"How is she doing?" April asked.

"She is in pretty good spirits," Mikey said. "We all went in a few minutes. Don has pretty much taken control of the whole thing."

"The rest of us kind of panicked," Raph said.

Splinter let out a little chuckle. He couldn't blame his boys for being panicked. They were young and boys. The idea of child birth was always scary.

"That's understandable boys," Splinter said before heading into his bedroom.

April headed into the bathroom and collected a few towels. After that she headed into the nursery. She opened a drawer of the dresser and got out a few receiving blankets.

Once she had her supplies together she went into Splinter's room. She knew they were in for a long night.


	3. Chapter 3

So it just after midnight where I am as I post this. Happy 28th birthday to me! Even though I am 28, married, and have kids I will be having a TMNT themed birthday. I have a Splinter pinata I made myself, a ninja turtles cake, and we'll be watching Teenage mutant ninja turtles 2 : Secret of the ooze after cake. Love my life!  
\---

Leo, Raph, and Don had managed to fall asleep in the living room. Mikey couldn't sleep. He was too excited about meeting his little sibling. Not to mention he couldn't sleep knowing his mother was in so much pain. How could his brothers sleep through that screaming? How could a person yell so loud?

At around four in the morning the screaming suddenly stopped. Mikey sat up and listened. Had something gone wrong? Why didn't he hear anything? Everything was silent for a few long moments.

Then he heard it.

A baby crying. The crying was loud for a few seconds but then it calmed down.

The bedroom door opened and April came out with a trash bag. She placed it off to the side. Mikey quickly rushed to her side. He couldn't wait to find out about the baby.

"When can I see the baby?" Mikey asked.

April jumped slightly at the sudden noise. She had expected all of the turtles to be asleep.

"I didn't know anyone was still awake," April said. "Come on in and see her."

"Her?" the green clad turtle asked.

April opened the door and nodded for Mikey to go in. The youngest turtle walked slowly into the room. He was almost scared to go in. He had never been near a baby before.

Annie was sitting up in the bed covered up with a blanket. Splinter was sitting on the edge of the bed looking at her with a look of aye and wonder. When Mikey walked closer he saw the small bundle in Annie's arms. It was pressed close to her chest.

It was wrapped in a green blanket and was making soft noises.

"You have a little sister," Splinter announced. "Her name is Venus."

Mikey's heart began to race. He had a little sister and he was the first one to see her! He felt so special.

"You can hold her as soon as she's done eating," Annie explained.

Eating? It took Mikey a minute to figure that one out. When he did he blushed. The whole thing was exciting but it was exposing him to a lot of tings he forgot happened in the real world.

"Alright little one," Annie said as the baby let out a whine.

She brought the child to her shoulder and patted her until she let out a loud burp. Splinter stood up and nodded for Mike to sit down. Mikey quickly sat down and looked at his mother and sister.

"Here," Annie said helping Mikey take Venus into his arms. "Hold her head up."

With a little adjustment Mikey get the child into the right position. He finally had a good look at her. She looked like a smaller version of Splinter. She didn't have any fur. She was mostly pink with large splashes of brown. Her long tail was twitching but was curled up. Her tiny little eyes were closed. Mikey couldn't wait to see what color they.

"I'm Mikey," he said. "I'm one of your brothers. I think the two of us are going to be great friends."

April walked into the room with the bassinet. She set it up next to the bed. The little one in his arms gave a yawn and wiggled a bit.

"Let's put her to bed," Splinter said taking his daughter. "We all need some sleep."

Mikey let out a loud yawn. He was tired but he was too excited to sleep.

"Just a few more minutes," he begged.

Splinter smiled at his youngest son. He was glad to see the turtle was so excited about having a young sister. He hoped his love for her wouldn't wane when he realize that babies could get kind of annoying. He loved his boys but he wasn't excited about reliving those sleepless nights.

"I'll crash in Ralph's room," April said. "He's asleep in the living room and his room is livable."

April didn't wait for a reply. She was far too tired to wait for their approval. She walked out leaving the family alone.

"Wait," Mikey said looking up at his father. "This means I'm not the baby anymore."

"That's right," Splinter said. "You're an older brother now. With that comes more responsibility."

"I wonder if the guys will treat me any different?" he questioned.

Often Leo and Don would defend him when he did something by saying that he was the baby. He was too young to know any better. That would change. He wasn't sure how to feel about that.

"Don't worry," Annie said. "You'll always be special and you'll always be Mikey. That won't change no matter how many kids we have."

"More?" Mikey asked in a shocked voice. "You're going to have more?"

"We hope not," Splinter said with a laugh. "We're going to more careful from now one. Five is enough for me."

"Alright," Mikey said standing up. "I can see you guys are tired. I'm dead tired too."

Splinter helped Mikey put Venus into the bassinet and cover her up. The child gave a little cry before falling asleep. Splinter covered her up and tucked her in.

"Good night Mom, Dad, and Venus," he said before leaving the room.

Splinter quickly got under the blankets with Annie. Sleep was trying to take him and he wanted to give in so badly.

"Splinter," Annie said. "Venus is so perfect. We got really lucky with the way she looks. She looks like a normal rat. I was worried she would come out looking strange. Mikey seems to like her."

"Yes," Splinter said snuggling against her. "He is a little sad about not being the baby anymore but he will adjust."

Annie wanted to talk to him more but she just couldn't. She was sore and tired. She needed to sleep. She decided that they would talk in the morning. For the first time in ages Annie was happy. She had a new born baby, four teenage sons, and a lovely boyfriend. She really couldn't ask for more.

\---

Mikey left Splinter's room and was headed to his when he noticed Leo coming out of the bathroom.

"Is the baby here yet?" Leo asked. "I saw April walk out Splinter's room so I guessed it was over."

"It's a little girl," Mikey said finding energy from somewhere. "Her name is Venus. She is too cute for words."

"Wow," Leo said. "A sister. I'll wait until the morning to see her."

"I got to hold her," Mikey bragged. "I can't wait to see her in the morning. Uh... if Raph wakes up make sure he knows April is in his room."

"Sure thing," he said as he watched Mikey bounce off to his room.

Mikey was sure happy about the baby. Leo was excited about having a sister. Things were sure going to different with a girl in the house. He was becoming comfortable with Annie. She really did seem to care about him.

Maybe one day he would be as comfortable as Mikey. He smiled at the thought and went off to bed.

\----

I've heard that rats are born blind and deaf. I've always had rats but never bred them. I don't want her to be deaf so I'm not going to include that. After all she is part human. I can do what I want. :)


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry about not updating this. The holidays are crazy. Plus some reason when I went to post this I saved it as a draft instead of posting it! Uh! So it should haven been up ages ago! So dumb.

_______

Splinter wasn't sure how to feel. He loved all of his children. Venus was his first girl and he was grateful for her. Yet, he was so tired. He forgot how much work a new born child was.

When the turtles had come into his life he was very young. He had no problem keeping up with them.

Now that he was older he was struggling with Venus. She was only a week old and he felt totally worn out.

After she woke up at four for her early morning feeding Splinter found himself unable to go back to sleep. He rolled onto his side and looked at his lover and child. Annie was in a deep sleep with Venus curled up against her. She was smiling and looked happy as she relaxed in a dream land. She was doing so well. She never complained about the crying and seemed to have infinite patience with her child. She was the perfect mother.

Splinter couldn't help but feel bad for her. She was yanked away from her family and the life she knew. Even though she never complained about it Splinter could tell she missed them.

Tea. Perhaps he just needed some tea. The warm drink always helped him think.

He got to his feet and slipped on his robe. He carefully slipped out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.

The lair was quiet and dark for a change. It always seemed that someone was up. Mikey and Don often lost track of time and staying up well into the dawn. Raph was one to disappear into the night. Splinter tried not to be over protective of the boys. They weren't really boys anymore. They were nearly all grown up.

He groaned to himself as he flicked on the kitchen light. He fetched the kettle and filled it with water. Splinter turned his head when he heard someone entering the lair. He wasn't surprised to see Raph coming in.

"Where have you been?" Splinter asked.

"Checking the sewers," Raph said. "I went for a walk when Venus started crying. I heard something out there."

"Foot?" Splinter asked flicking on the stove.

"No," Raph said. "This was large. I tried to follow it but it disappeared into the darkness."

That caused Splinter pause. They weren't used to seeing strangers in the sewers. Once in a while homeless people lived in the top levels but never as deep as they were. He knew the turtle could look after themselves but he had girlfriend and new born child to worry about. He planned on training Annie as soon as she had recovered from child birth.

"I'll send one of your brothers out to check things out when they wake up," Splinter said. "We are not at our best right now. We can not afford an attack."

"How are you handling things?" Raph asked sitting at the kitchen table. "You look so tired."

"I am," Splinter said sitting next across from him. "I am alright. I know this won't last forever."

"How did you do it Dad?" Raph asked looking down at his hands. "Venus is only one baby and she is so much work. How did you take care of all four of us by yourself?"

"It was hard," Splinter admitted. "Sometimes I went hungry to fed you four. It was worth it though. Watching you children grow has made me a happy man. I know it will be the same with Venus."

"I guess I kind of always took you for granted," Raph said. "I never realized how hard it was to take care of child. I'm sorry for always being a pain."

"No apology needed," Splinter said with a laugh. "You were a child and you are still a teenager. You are doing much better. I am very proud of you."

"Look," Raph said. "Tomorrow is Halloween. Why don't we take Venus for her first Halloween?"

"That is very kind," Splinter said. "A bit unlike you but I will accept the offer. Annie might not want to give up Venus but I'm sure I can talk her around."

Raph smiled. He never it wasn't like him but he felt bad for his parents. They needed a break. He had already discussed it with his brothers. They were all up for taking turns watching Venus.

"Get some sleep," Splinter said. "Don't worry about your training tomorrow. I want you boys to take some time to relax. You're going to need it if your going to watch your sister."

Raph nodded and got to his feet. He knew his father was right. He wondered off towards his bedroom.

Splinter sighed as heard his kettle begin to whistle. He quickly took it off the heat before the noise woke his child.

 

\---

 

 

Raph walked into his room to find Leo in his bed. The older turtle was passed out cold.

"Hey!" Raph said poking his brother hard. "What are you doing in my bed?"

"Sleeping," Leo groaned. "Your room is furthest from Splinter's room. You can barely hear Venus here."

"There is something out there," Raph said. "I heard something new in the sewers tonight."

"What?" Leo asked sitting up. "Did you see it?"

"No," Raph said. "But I can tell you this thing was big. Splinter wants use to take the day off tomorrow but after that we need to find this thing. We need to know if it's dangerous."

"Alright," Leo said. "Did you get a chance to talk to Sensi about taking Venus?"

"Yep," he said dropped down on the bed. "You know Leo Sensi has been the best Dad we could ever ask for. I...I never realized how lucky we were. He works so hard for us."

"Yea we are," Leo said with a yawn. "Come on. This bed is plenty big for two. We need our sleep."

Raph crawled into bed with his brother and quickly fell asleep.

 

\--

Across the lair little Venus twisted in her sleep. Her eyes weren't open all the way yet but some things were slipping into her vision. She could often saw bright colors. One more than others. Sounds. Sounds filled her tiny ears. Her mother. Her father. Her brothers.

Her brain seemed to be developing faster than her body. She was taking in so much of the word around her. She often saw the massive shapes of her brothers when she closed her eyes. Her dreams. She seemed to always be with them when she slept.

She couldn't wait to open her eyes. She couldn't wait to really see her mother, father, and brothers for the first time.

\---

Yes that last bit was a bit of strange part. I'm sure all of you have guessed that little Venus won't be a normal child.

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

The next day Annie wasn't too excited about losing Venus for a few hours. She knew she needed the break but she didn't know if she was ready. After a short talk Splinter convinced her to hand the child over to the turtles for a little while. He knew they would do anything to protect their little sister.

Leo called April and had her pick up a stroller, some formula, and a couple of bottles for Venus. She was being such a help. Leo wished there was some way he could repay her. 

Little Venus didn't object as Leo took her into his arms. 

Mikey was nearly jumping out of his shell with excitement. Halloween was the only day they could walk on the streets. No one looked twice. They could act like they were just normal people. They had even won a few costume contest in their day. 

He headed up first. He couldn't wait for Leo, Raph, and Don to get Venus ready. 

"Are you sure you have everything?" Annie asked. "A change of clothes? Wipes? Diapers? April is going to meet you right? She just ate but....she'll be hungry in about two hours. Do you remember how to burp her?"

"I got it," Raph said putting the baby bag over his shoulder. "We've got everything under control."

"You can check in anytime you want," Don said. "We'll have the cell with us the whole time. Whoever has Venus will have the phone."

Leo had Venus cradled in his arms. She looked so cute in her hello kitty jacket. Annie kissed her daughter on the head. Venus made a happy noise and curled up tighter against her brother.

"Come along Annie," Splinter's voice called from the bedroom. "Leave them."

 Annie sighed but walked away to the bedroom. 

\--

Leo, Don, and Raph didn't waste time going through the sewers. The noises Raph had heard made them nervous. Even though they didn't hear anything as they walked they didn't want to take chances with Venus. 

 When they reached the street level they headed towards April and Casey's apartment. April was standing outside with a stroller. She rushed over when she saw the turtles. 

"Aw!" April said taking the child into her arms. "She's already so big."

Venus protested being removed from her brother. She began to cry and gave a few kicks.

"Don't be like that," April said holding the child close. "I was there when you were born little one."

Venus grunted and then fell silent and still. April sat the child in the stroller and buckled her in. She tucked a blanket in around her. Venus relaxed into the seat. Raph placed the diaper bag in the space under neath.

"She's a little grumpy," Leo explained. "She is just starting to get her teeth."

"Aw," April said. "Poor little one."

Leo dug out her teething ring and handed it to her. She quickly bit into the ring and let out a happy squeak.

"If you need anything just call me," April said still looking at the little one. 

"Of course," Leo said. "I'm taking first shift. If you guys..."

Leo didn't have a chance to finish his sentence before his brothers were gone. He shook his head looking down at Venus. 

"I'm glad to see you coming around Leo," April said. "I'm really proud of you."

"Well they look so tired," the turtle explained. "Dad looks like he is going to pass out most days."

“Have children is hard,” she explained. “It's good they have four wonderful sons who are willing to help out.”

Leo knew he was doing the right thing. He needed to put his problems aside and help out. She was his little sister after after.

–

Annie managed to push her child to the back of her head. She knew she was in good hands. The turtles would never let anything happen to her. Splinter didn't waste anytime taking her to bed. She could tell he was anxious for a little private time. The two of them hadn't engaged in sexual activities in a week. Due to the fact Annie was in hiding from the rest of the world she was unable to get her birth control. All they could do was use condoms and spermicide. If they were careful they would be unlikely to have another child.

As Splinter stripped her of her clothes and then slowly slid inside of her. Her mind was cleared of her worries. She wrapped her arms around his neck and relaxed into the bed. No matter how many times they have sex it always felt wonderful.

“Oh Splinter,” She moaned closing her eyes.

The rat have a little grunt. He seemed lost in the pleasure. He knew he wasn't going to last long. It felt like it had been years since he had been inside her. He started thrusting hard and fast. He needed to reach his peak as soon as possible.

Annie cried out and grabbed onto his arms. It wasn't like him to go so fast. He usually took his time. It was so intense as he rubbed her insides. She wrapped her legs around his waist and tried to pull him closer.

She threw back her head and let out a long howl as she felt climax rock her body. She didn't normally climax during sex. Splinter was usually too gentle with her. She normally didn't get enough stimulation. Her body started to tremble as she came down.

“Annie!” he cried as he came.

It seemed like it was never going to end. His body shook and he kept thrusting. After a moment he pulled out of her carefully. He disposed of the condom before curling up against her.

“I needed that,” he whispered with a chuckle.

“Me too,” she said smiling. “Venus is sure draining us.”

“Yes,” Splinter said. “But she is worth it. I'm sorry your family can't be here to help out. I know things would go easier if your mother was here with you.”

“Yeah,” Annie said with a sigh. “I wish I could talk to her. I wish I could just tell her I'm alright and not to worry. I saw her on the news last week still looking for leads to where I am.”

“Perhaps you could write her a letter,” Splinter said.

“Maybe,” Annie said. “I wonder if hearing from me would make her feel any better.”

Splinter frowned and nuzzled against her. He hated the fact she was sad because of him. It was her relationship with him that caused her to have to hide.

“Don't worry Hun,” she said resting against his soft fur. “I would never trade you or Venus for anything.”

They two of them climbed under the covers and cuddled tightly against each other again. Splinter and Annie fell silent. Splinted closed his eyes with the intention of just resting for a few minutes but quickly fell asleep.

 


	6. Chapter 6

Leonardo had no problems watching his little sister. The more time he spent with her the more he liked her. She was awful cute. Girls kept stopping and making over her. It seemed girls loved rats. Well, at least cute ones.

 

It was nearly two hours before Venus began to cry.

 

“You hungry little one?” Leo asked.

 

Venus gave a louder cry. The turtle pushed his sister into a restaurant and got a table. He knew he was supposed to change off with his brothers but he decided against it. They could enjoy their one night of freedom.

 

After changing her and making a bottle in the bathroom Leonardo took a sit at the table. He ordered some pizza and cradled Venus in his arms. She latched onto the bottle with a happy noise.

 

“Leo!” Don's voice carried across the restaurant.

 

Leonardo looked up and was surprised to see Donatello entering the restaurant. He had a bag full of candy with him. He walked over to the table and sat down.

 

“How did you find me?” Leo asked.

 

“Trust me people remember seeing a giant turtle with a baby rat,” Don said with a laugh. “I'm surprised you still have her.”

 

“I didn't want to bother you guys,” the blue clad turtle said as he watched his sister eat.

 

“It's good to see you're finally taking to her,” Don said.

 

“I needed to accept it,” Leo said. “I'm now the oldest of five children. That is just the way it is.”

 

“Think they'll have anymore?” the purple clad turtle asked.

 

“I doubt it,” Leo said as his sister fished her bottle. “Dad looks so tired.”

 

He put Venus on his shoulder and gave her a few pats on her back. She gave a loud burp. Leo placed the child in his lap and supported her with his arm. She curled against him.

 

Don smiled looking at the two of them. Leo looked so natural with a child in his arms. No doubt he would make a great Dad. Don looked over his shoulder at the almost empty restaurant. The dinner rush hadn't come in yet.

 

“What do you think is going on in the sewer?” Don asked.

 

“Something is down there for sure,” Leo said. “I guess it would be stupid to think we were the only mutants out there.”

 

“Do you think it's dangerous?” the turtle asked.

 

“I doubt it,” Leo said. “If it wanted to fight with us it would have by now.”

 

A waitress came up to the table and laid down their pizza. She gave Leo a long smile before walking over.

 

“Now I see why you want the baby,” Don said with a chuckle. “Getting a lot of attentions from the laddies?”

 

“Some,” Leo said smirking. “Hey, if Dad can find a girl why can't I?”

 

“Anything is possible I guess,” Don said before he started eating the pizza.

 

0-0-0-0

 

Annie slept for several hours before she woke up. The lair was quiet and Splinter was pushed up against her. He felt so warm and comforting. She inhaled his scent and smiled. She felt so happy in his arms.

 

 

She didn't much time to enjoy the quiet. She could hear the turtles arriving home. They were talking and laughed. She carefully climbed out of bed careful not to wake up Splinter. The love of her life needed his rest.

 

She dressed herself quickly and walked out of the bedroom. Maybe all of this was going to work out after all.

 


	7. trouble

It's been so long since I touched any of my fanfiction. I'm in college so that takes up most of my time. I am now free of that until the fall. So, I decided to catch up on some of my forgotten stories. 

I loved writing this story. I found it very heart warming. 

0000

Little Venus was growing quickly. By the time she was two weeks old her eyes were wide open. Bright balls of blue staring back at the world. Her fur was in for the most part. She was mostly white with large patches of brown. 

Her teeth were coming in and she was chewing on everything she could reach. Splinter knew there would be trouble as soon as he could master walking.

April picked up some chew treats at the pet store and those really helped slow Venus down.

Venus didn't know what to think of the world she was born into. Her family was so strange and different. Her father looked like her. Her brothers were taller and green. Her mother and Aunt April looked alike. Then there was Uncle Casey. He was the loudest and tallest. 

Of course, Venus loved them all. 

As soon as she could crawl she found herself exploring the extent of the lair. To her disappoint she was unable to reach certain parts of it. 

Anytime someone caught in a forbidden part the would pick her in their arms and carry her away. Venus would squeal, twist, and sometimes even bite. No one ever seemed put off by this.

They would simply walk back into the living room and place in her play pen. 

The young rat hated that thing. It held her fairly well and made it hard for her to explore. She didn't like it at all. 

Once she had been caught trying to bite through the fabric. Her father had scolded her quite heavily for that one. That didn't stop her. She tried to chew through it every chance she got. 

Her chance to explore more came slightly before turned three weeks old. 

Her parents had left her in the care of her oldest brother. He always wore blue and everyone called him "Leo." He wasn't her favorite but he seemed nice enough. When he watched her he never put in the play pen. Venus liked that.

It was late on evening and it was just her and Leo. He had her placed on his lap and was reading her a book. Her Mom was taking a nap with her father and she had no idea where her brothers had gotten to. She believed they said something about seeing a movie. Whatever that meant. 

"See Venus," he said pointing to a picture of a rat. "That's what you are. An adorable little rat."

Venus looked down at the picture. The creature in the picture was small, furry, and had whiskers. Yet, it did look like her. 

"Can you say rat?" Leo questioned.

Venus made an annoyed noise. Why did he want her to repeat it? What kind of game was he playing? Her mother tried to the same thing with her all the time. Except she was always trying to get her say "Mom". Venus refused to play until she understood the point of the game.

"Maybe another time," he said turning the page.

Then there was a loud banging at the door. The noise caused Venus to jump. She looked in the direction of the noise.

"I need some help!" Aunt April's voice called.

"Coming," Leo called.

To surprise her brother handed her the book and stood up. 

"You can stay right here," Leo said. "Don't move. If you do I'll have to put you in the pen."

Oh no. Venus didn't want that. She quickly picked up the book and looked it.

Leo opened the front door and April walked in carrying a box. 

"Can you give me a hand?" she asked. "I picked up a few things for Venus. The thrift store had some great stuff today."

Venus put down her book and looked into the direction of the door. For her? Aunt April always brought her nice things. 

She put down the book and slid off the couch. Maybe if she was quiet no one would notice her. 

She crawled towards the door and looked around. Leo and April had left the door open to carry in the boxes. They didn't seem to notice her as they walked past.

The door. The outside world. 

That intrigued Venus far more than anything that could be in those boxes. Darkness lay beyond the door. Venus knew she shouldn't but the urge was almost over powering. 

She gave her brother and aunt a quick glance. They were too busy with the boxes to notice her. 

Venus decided to grab her chance and slipped out of the door. She glanced from left to right in the darkness. Which way? 

Without much thought she choose to go left. The ground beneath was fairly dry. Yet, from time to time she would touch water. The cold liquid would leak through her dress and into her fur. 

The young rat didn't like to get wet so she would try to find a different path. 

After a few minutes of crawling everything seemed to get darker. She could hear loud noises and smell unfamiliar smells. She was also getting cold. Her fur was very wet and smelt badly. 

She stopped crawling and looked around. Where was she? How could she get back? Why did she leave? 

She threw back her head and gave a loud cry. That was what she did when she wanted her mother. No reply came. She tried again. There had to be someone out there. No doubt her family was looking for her. 

On the third cry she heard something. Something large was moving towards her. She suddenly curled up against the wall. 

"What is that noise?" a harsh voice called. 

To Venus' surprise a large creature emerged from the darkness. It was green like her brothers but it didn't look like her brothers. It was much taller and had a long tail.

"Little Splinter," he said seeing her. "What are you doing her little rat?"

Venus shook her head. She was shaking and scared. She had no idea what to do. She opened her mouth and only a little squeak come out.

"I see," he said suddenly smiling. "Can't even talk yet."

Venus realized at once that this wasn't a creature to fear. If he wanted to harm her he would have already done it. 

"Come along," he said picking her up. "I'll take you back but you must not run off again. These sewers are dangerous."

Venus didn't know what to think as the creature picked her up. He was big and scary looking but he seemed nice. He was taking her home. 

"I guess there's no harm in telling you who I am," he said. "You can't even talk. Who will you tell? My name is leatherhead. I'm a mutant just like your family."

Mutant? That was a word Venus hadn't heard before. What did it mean?

Her new friend was silent most of the way. He looked down at her from time to time with curious eyes. How was this little one created? He only knew of Splinter and the four turtles. Where had this come from?

When they neared her home he sat her down on a dry spot.

"Go," he said pointing the door. "Be good little one."

Venus glanced at the door and then looked back at her friend. She wanted to go with him. He seemed interesting and she wanted to learn about him. Was he alone? Where was his family? 

Venus could hear her brother calling her. His voice wasn't coming from their home. It was coming from some where did in the darkness. No doubt they had gone to look for her.

She sat down in front of the door and gave several loud cries. She would stay home for the time but as soon as she was big enough she would go looking for her new friend. After all she didn't even get to say "thank you."


	8. snowflake

I've done a lot of research about rats and turtles during the process of writing this. Male turtles reach "adulthood" between the years of 2 to 5. Females are a few years later. Rats are much quicker. I've had rats before so I know they are fully grown at 7 months (really sooner than that). It might seem Venus is growing up quickly but she is part rat after all.

 

\---

Leo didn't know what to do when he saw his sister was gone. He knew he was dead if his parents found out. What if they thought he did it on purpose.

"We have to find her," he said in panicked tone. 

"Calm down Leo," she said placing her hands on his shoulders. "She can't walk. She couldn't have got far."

Leo didn't seem to hear her as he ran out of the lair and began shouting.

"Venus!" he said quickly running down the sewer. 

"Leo!" April shouted running after him.

She knew that Leo was in a panic. She needed him to stop and take a breath. There with no way they could find her if he just ran around screaming.

"Venus!" the blue clad turtle shouted again. "Come on to Leo."

It felt like they were running for ages. April didn't believe that Venus could have crawled that far. Suddenly, they both stopped in their tracks. They could hear Venus crying.

"Where is it coming from?" Leo asked looking around. 

"This way!" April said running down a side tunnel.

Leo quickly followed her. Before they could reach the sound of the noise it stopped. That sent panic through the pair's hearts. What if something had happened to her. 

For the longest time the pair stood still. They were hoping to hear some kind of sound that would tell them where she was. For the longest time the sound of dripping water was their only company. 

Then, suddenly the noise filled the air again. 

"That's back towards the lair," Leo exclaimed taking off.

April took a deep breath before chasing after the turtle. The sound grew louder as they ran. Leo hoped that it didn't stop again. They were so close.

Finally his little sister came into view. She was sitting on the ground crying. Leo ran over to her and picked her up. She was still crying but she calmed down as Leo held her.

 "I need to give her a bath and get her cleaned up," Leo explained, "Poor thing is shaking. Please don't tell Sensi and Annie. They'll kill me."

"Don't worry about it right now," April said. "Take care of your sister."

When Leo disappeared into the bathroom April sat down on the couch and began to unload the boxes. 

00

Venus would never forget that night in the sewers as long as she lived. She had been so scared and that creature had come out of no where and saved her.

She sat in that door way and cried for her brother. She cried for someone to pick her up, give her a bath, and a new set of clothes. She was wet, cold, and hungry.

Leo and April quickly found her and took her into their home. Venus cuddle against her brother and slowly calmed her crying. She wanted to see her new friend again but she wouldn't be leaving their home anytime soon.

To her surprise her brother wasn't angry. He gave her a bath, a clean dress, and a snack. He didn't even tell their parents that she had left. Venus knew everyone would be in trouble if they found out she had left.

Leo sat her down on the floor in the living room and gave her a new book. It was about wild animals. There were all kinds of animals Venus didn't recognize. She made a happy noise and opened the book.  

 The blue clad turtle sat down on the couch and looked over at his human friend.

"Don't beat yourself up over it," April said patting his shoulder. "She's fine. Things like this happen. Don't forget you're still a kid yourself. You're allowed to make mistakes."

"I guess," Leo said looking at his sister.

"Look," she said. "I'm going. I have to leave for Paris in the morning. Casey will be around if you need anyone to pick anything up."

 "Thanks for all your April," Leo said. "I don't know what I would do without ya."

April gave the small rat a kiss on the head. Venus smiled up at the woman. She was always so nice to her. She quietly left the lair. 

"Leonardo!" came Splinter's voice. "Are you brothers home yet?"

"No father," Leonardo called. "They should be home any minute."

"Hum..." came a tired yawn. "It's nice to see them out enjoying themselves."

The large rat appeared next to the couch. Leonardo jumped at the sudden arrival. No matter how long he knew his father his speed always caught him off guard. The rat gave a little chuckle. 

"How is my little one?" Splinter asked picking up his daughter. "Your poor mother is still out cold."

Venus smiled rubbing against her father. She loved her way her father's fur felt. It was always so soft and warm. It made her feel safe. 

"Can you say 'Dad'?" he questioned sitting down with the daughter.

Venus laughed. That silly game. Why did they want her to repeat them? Everyone around her wanted to play that silly game.

"Weren't we talking by now?" Leo questioned.

"Well," he said glancing at his son. "It was a bit different you boys. You were baby turtles mutated by ooze. She is....well...different. I expect she will develop quicker than a normal human baby but maybe not as fast as you four."

Talk? Venus gave them a confused look. Why would she want to waste her time talking? She always got everything she wanted without talking. is that why they wanted her to repeat things? They wanted her to...talk. 

She gave an annoyed growl.

"What's wrong you?" Leo asked with a laugh. "You don't want to talk?""

 "Oh," Splinter said with a laugh. "She'll come around."

No way. Venus thought with a snort. It just didn't seem worth the effort. 

"Come along," her father said standing up. "Let's go make dinner little one. Your brothers will home soon."

Venus gave a happy cry as her father carried her into the kitchen. She loved to watch him cook. There was always something interesting happening. 

 


	9. Chapter 9

Annie was scared her baby was growing up far too fast. She was only four weeks old and was trying to walk. She would walk around the lair holding onto everything she could. She seemed too scare to try to walk on her own. No one was pushing her. Everyone knew she would do it when she was ready.

The only thing that worried Annie was the lack of sounds coming from her child. She would make some sounds but no words. Splinter kept telling her not to worry but she couldn't help it. She believed her daughter was capable of speech but for some reason had decided not to speak.

She could almost see the wheels turning in her young child's brain as she played. She was drawing and coloring very well. She seemed to favor her coloring book of wild animals. She had colored almost every picture she had of rats, turtles, alligator, and crocodiles. She seemed to favor the alligator most of all. 

Christmas was fast approaching. Maybe she would get her a stuffed alligator for Christmas. She had a feeling she would like that. 

She was sitting in the living room watching her young one play. The turtles and Splinter were in the dojo training. They had all fallen out of practice. Little Venus took up most of their time. She was so grateful the boys were willing to help. Even Leo had taken a liken to the little one. 

Their little family was starting to feel like a family. Mikey was still the only one who called her Mom but she was alright with that. The others might come around but they might not. 

\---

Venus tried to focus on her coloring. She had leatherhead on her mind as she filled the page with color. She was sure there was a picture of him in her book. Several in fact. There was a word written above the picture but she was still unable to read it. Maybe her parents would drop the talking thing and teach her read. Then maybe she would know what he was really called. 

Of course if she would talk she could just ask them to teach her to read. The thought of speech still didn't appeal to the young rat. 

She looked up with interest when she heard a door open. She saw her brother Donnie walking into the room. He was sweating and heading into the kitchen. 

Donnie! 

She hadn't seen him in a while. She wanted a hug from him.

Venus put her crayons down and pulled herself to her feet. She held onto the coffee table and then a chair. She paused when she reached the edge of the kitchen. There wasn't anything to hold onto for a big distance. Venus looked at her brother. He was standing at the stove cooking something.

Making up her mind to get to her brother she took a few nervous steps. 

Hey. It wasn't so bad, she thought. She could do this.

She looked down at her feet and carefully placed one in front of the other. She was doing it! Her heart began to race as she carefully crossed the floor.

Bang! 

Venus gave a surprised cry when she felt herself hit a kitchen chair. She looked around in amazement. She had walked all the way to the table. 

She looked up to see Donnie looking down at her. 

"That's impressive," he said picking her up. "Walking all on your own. It won't be long before your using the potty. One day you'll be big enough to train with us."

Train? Did he mean when they went into the big room with all the sharp and big things. She had tried to go into the room once and her father had chased her out. She would be allowed in there one day? She liked that idea.

"Don't rush her," Annie said with laugh. "I do need to start on potty training though. I think she would understand the concept. She doesn't like being wet."

No! She didn't. Diapers were the worst. She'd been wondering when she could get rid of it. She nodded at her mother. 

"You want to get rid of diapers don't you?" she said rubbing her daughter's ear. "It's amazing what you can understand."

"Casey picked up some school books for her," Donnie explained. "As soon as she starts talking we can start teaching her how to read."

Read! Venus wanted that but what did talking have to do with it?

"I'll pick them up anyway," Annie said. "We need more carrots. She's going through them like crazy. Are you alright with watching her?"

"Sure," he said smiling at his sister. "She can sit in her chair and watch me cook."

Venus smiled. She liked that idea.

000

Bedtime was Venus' least favorite time of the day. Not because she didn't like to sleep but because she didn't like her bed. The bars reminded her of the play pen. She liked having a place to hide and curl up in but she didn't like feeling trapped.

Usually she sat and cried until one of her parents came to her. They would cuddle her close and carry her off to their bed. Lately they had stopped doing that. Her mother would sit with her in the rocking chair and rock until she fell asleep. Venus would wake up to find herself back in the crib.

She was done with that. She wanted to sleep somewhere else. She grabbed her favorite blanket and carefully climbed out of the crib. Despite taking her time she fell on the floor a bit hard. She gave a wine but quickly collected herself. She didn't want her parents to hear. They would just put her back in the crib. 

Venus looked around the room for a good place to sleep. Her eyes fell on the space under her bed. It was small but not too small. She could easily get in and out. There were a few stuffed animal under there along with an extra blanket. She would nice an warm.

She nodded as she made up her mind. She crawled under the bed and laid down. She spread out her extra blanket the best she could before covering herself up. It was much nicer. It was darker. She couldn't see the night light from under there. Venus gave a happy sigh before falling asleep. 

 


	10. Chapter 10

Donatello knew he needed to go on a junk run. His sister needed a new bed. She was refusing to in her crib. He was worried she was going to get hurt if she kept climbing over the bars. Donnie knew they either needed to build one or buy one. Both required resources.

Plus Christmas was right around the corner. He always helped make sure his family had a good Christmas. He planned on checking the dumpster behind a computer repair company. The people who owned it didn't even bother to scrap the gold off the boards. It was always worth a trip.

The purple clad turtle slipped on a backpack and went out into the living room. Annie, Leo, and Mikey were sitting in front of the television. He could hear water running somewhere. No doubt someone was in the shower. 

Donnie paused looking at Annie. She looked so tired and bored. They were watching a Godzilla movie but his mother didn't look too interested in it. He felt bad for Annie. She almost never left the lair. She had gone to visit Casey the day before but had hurried home.

The turtle knew Splinter was putting pressure on her to stay below. He was worried the Foot would find her. The longer the Foot was quiet the more worried Splinter got. He was scared they were planning something big.

"Annie," Donnie said. "I'm going junking. Want to come?"

Leo glanced over his shoulder at him with a curious look. It wasn't like Donnie to ask anyone to go junking with him. It was a task he often liked to do alone. 

"Sure," she said getting to her feet. "Let me get dressed. It's pretty cold out."

Annie disappeared into her bedroom. 

"I didn't think Splinter wanted her out at night," Mikey said. 

"He needs to give her a little space," Donnie said. "She can take care of herself."

"Alright," Leo said turning his attention back towards the television.

Donnie sighed. He knew he might get in trouble for taking Annie out but he didn't care. He knew Splinter was being unreasonable and he wasn't going to stand for it.

\--

Annie was relieved to see Splinter was still in the shower. He always took a long time in there. She wasted not time pulling on a sweater and then a jacket. She knew she would hell for going out later but she would deal with that when the time came.

She didn't blame him for worrying. After all they did have enemies but he was getting out of hand. Anytime she wanted to go out she had to have a good reason. Well, she was done with that. She had already wasted time in a controlling relationship and she wasn't going to do it again. If she just asserted herself he would back off. 

The young woman walked back into the living room. She heard the water shut off in the bathroom.

"Come on," she said already headed for the door. "Let's go."

The two of them quickly slipped out of the lair.

"Where are we going?" she questioned.

"Computer repair place I know," he explained as they made their way. "They throw out all kinds of good stuff."

"Is this how you guys have survived for so long?" she questioned.

"One of the ways," he said. "We've always found a way to have a good life. I mean there were a lot of dry spells but it's getting easier and easier."

"I'm sorry I can't help more," Annie said.

In truth she was. She had managed to bring a little money with it but there wasn't much left. She knew having her and Venus there was burden on them. 

"Don't be," he said. "I'll put your work scrapping gold off computer parts when we get back. It takes forever and i hate doing it."

 "I wish I could work," she said. "I miss it."

"Maybe we could figure something out," Donnie said. "I used to do tech help from home. It was awful but the pay was nice."

"No," she said shaking her head. "That's just the thing. I don't want to be locked in that house all that time. I just don't think Splinter would allow it."

"I think he would," he said. "Dad just worried. After all we've had some pretty scary..."

Annie knew Donnie was talking but she wasn't listening. Something was out there in the sewer. She could feel it. Suddenly she remembered the night in the sewer. She knew there was something out there. She froze in her tracks.

"What is it?" Donnie finally asked looking around.

"Are there other mutants out there?" Annie questioned.

"Maybe," Donnie said with a shrug. "The guys think there might be something else done here."

As quickly as the feeling came it vanished.

"Come on," he said urging her own. "Let's get going."

\--

Annie never knew places threw out so much stuff. It didn't take Donnie long to fill his bag with decent looking computer components. 

"Do you find a lot of usable stuff?" Annie asked.

"Sure," Donnie said opening a dumpster behind an apartment building. "People are always getting new things and they just toss the old stuff in the trash. I got all of our VHS tapes from the trash. Some of our DVDs too. Right before Christmas is the best time."

"Why?" Annie said as Donnie pulled out a bag. 

"People are getting ready to get new stuff," he explained tossing the bag on the ground. "Some people donate it but most people just toss it. This bag doesn't feel like trash all."

Donne carefully opened the bag to reveal old children's toys. They were mostly half naked barbie dolls but there were also a few matchbox cars.

"See," Donnie said tying the bag. "You wouldn't believe what I find."

Annie felt a bit guilty. As a child she remembered her mother throwing away unwanted toys. She was often too busy to take them to the Goodwil. It seemed like more of a pain than it was worth. 

"Let's head back," Donnie said. "It's getting late and I don't want Father to worry too much."

Oh yes. Annie still had that to deal with. She took the bag Donnie was offering and the two of them headed down into the sewer. 

 


	11. Chapter 11

When Annie returned home she wasn't surprised to find Splinter wide awake. He was in bed waiting for her to return reading a book. She expected to see an angry or worried face but he just seemed happy to see her. He lowered the book as she walked into the room. 

"How did it go?" he asked as she undressed.

"Fine," Annie said as she changed into her night gown. "We got plenty of computer parts to harvest. I'll start helping Don with that tomorrow."

Annie crawled into the bed and slid up next to her lover.

"I'm sorry I've been so protective," he said as he began to play with her hair. 

He picked strain after strain of it up and ran it through his fingers.

"I know you don't mean anything by it ," she said. "This is a new situation for both of us."

Annie knew what Splinter was up to. When ever he was horny he would begin playing with her hair. She was ready for the intimacy. With Venus they didn't get much time to fool around. The woman leaned over and dug around in the bedside table. Her hands touched the bottle of lubrication and the box of condoms. She heard Splinter's book tumble to the ground.

"Hold on there big fellow," she said opening the condom box.

To her surprise it was empty. Oh shit, she thought throwing the box on the floor. They had used the last one a few days ago. She couldn't believe she had forgotten to buy more. 

"What's wrong?" he questioned looking at her surprised face.

"Out," she said. 

"One time won't hurt," Splinter urged. "We use the special lubricant."

"Yes," she said. "But we promised we'd be as careful as possible. Spermicide isn't the best thing."

"Please," he said kissing her neck. "Just this once."

Annie frowned. She wanted to have sex and it was clear Splinter wanted to as well. Yet, they have made a plan. She knew she shouldn't give in to him. If they started skipping out on protection she was going to end up getting pregnant again.

"I don't want to hear you complaining if you knock me up," she said giving into him. 

"I would never," he said disposing of his clothes. 

Annie opened his legs as Splinter settled between them. He helped her remove the night grown she had just put her on. She tossed the thin fabric to the floor. Her panties quickly joined the fabric. 

"Oh darling," she kissing his noise. "I could never say "no" to you."

Splinter grabbed the lubrication and applied it to his cock. Annie wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him in closer. The rat gasp as he slipped inside her. She let out a pleasured filled gasp he slid into her. No matter how many times they had sex it always felt new. 

"I'll pull out before I finish darling," he promised. "If that would be make you feel better."

"Forget it," she said rocking into his erection. "Just do it."

Splinter felt guilty about the situation. He and Annie had promised to always use protection. Neither of them really wanted to have anymore children. Yet, he couldn't stop himself. Annie was so amazing and beautiful. He always wanted to take her into his arms. 

Annie moaned she as felt his fur rubbing against her. It made the hair on her arms stand up. His whiskers were brushing against her face. Her body began to shake as she was pushed over the edge. She threw her head back into the pillow and began to whimper. 

She knew her lover was on the edge. His eyes were close and his mouth was hanging open. He seemed completely focused on his impending orgasm. 

"Dad!" Don called from another room.

Splinter gasp at the noise and began to climax inside of her. She couldn't help but laugh at the event. 

"I'm busy Donatello!" Splinter shouted.

That caused Annie to burst into a fit of laughter. Splinter pulled out of her with an apologetic look. 

"Sorry," came Donnie's reply. "I'll wait."

"Dang children," he said. 

"Don't worry," she said as she tried to get laughter under control. "You should have seen your face."

That rat grabbed his tissues from the bed side table and began to clean himself up.

"I'm taking a shower," she said getting out of bed. 

Annie was still giggling as she dressed herself. 

"I guess I'll see what Donatello wanted," he said shaking his head.

\--

When Splinter finally walked out of the living room he wasn't surprised to find it empty. It was nearly one in the morning and it wasn't like his sons to be up that late. Raphael was the only night owl among the group but even he had to sleep sometimes.

The rat walked down the hall towards Donatello's room. He cracked open the door and found the bed empty. He closed the door and walked down the rest of the way to the lab. He pushed open the door. 

He was a bit surprised to see Don awake. He was sitting on one of his computers in a dark room. 

"You wanted to speak to me?" Splinter said. 

Donnie jumped at the sudden noise and looked towards the door. 

"Hey." he said. "I didn't mean to bother you earlier."

"That's fine," Splinter said sitting down in a chair near his son.

"I just wanted to talk to you about Annie," Donnie explained. 

"Yes," he said with a sigh. "I guessed as much."

"What's going on your head?" the turtle asked glancing at his father.  "You've turned into such a control freak lately."

"I apologized to Annie tonight," Splinter said. "I know I've been unfair with her. I suppose I don't know how to behave."

"Well, you have to give it a break," Don said looking back at his computer. "Annie has been in a seriously abusive relationship before. She needs to know this a safe place for her."

"I would never hurt her," Splinter said. "I could never do that."

"I know that," Don said looking at her father. "I know you're just being over-protective but Annie might see it a different way."

Splinter hadn't thought of that. Perhaps his behavior was causing her discomfort. 

"She doesn't even think you would let her get a job," Donne said. 

"I would," Splinter said. "I have no desire to control her."

"Talk to her about it," Donnie said. "She doesn't show her feelings. She keeps everything locked in. You two have a child. You have to learn to communicate." 

"I know," Splinter said standing up. "Get some sleep Donatello. You look very tired. It is late."

"I will," Don said. "I'm just working on something."

Splinter shook his head getting to his feet. His sons never did know when it quit. He walked down the hall to Venus' room. He wasn't surprised to find the little one out of bed. She was back under her crib. The little rat was curled up under her pink blanket. Her head was tucked under tail. 

He hoped they would be able to get her a different bed soon. She didn't need to being sleeping on the floor.

\--

Venus peeked her eyes open. Even though her tail was blocking her view she could tell someone was in the room. The young rat moved her tail was excited to see her father through the darkness.

She let out a happy cry. Her father chuckled and knelt down next to her. 

"What are you doing down there?" he questioned. 

Venus didn't like being in her crib. She didn't like the walls. She felt trapped. She didn't feel trapped on the floor. 

"How about you come sleep with Mom and Dad until we get you a new bed?" her father questioned. 

Yes! Venus liked that idea. She grabbed her stuffed turtle and crawled out from under the bed.

"Come here," he said picking her up. "You must cold on the floor."

No. She wasn't cold but she was happy to be near her father. 

"Why won't you speak?" he asked gently touching her head. "I know you're smart. I know you can do it."

Why were they so desperate to talk? Maybe she could humor her father and speak. It would make him happy and she wanted to make him happy. What would he want to hear? 

Splinter saw the curious and thoughtful look on her face. He decided to give her a moment and see what she did.

"D..." she said. "Da..."

Her father smiled as his daughter tried to make letters. 

"Dad!" she finally said smiling.

"That's a girl," he said holding her tight. "I knew you could do it. Now, let's go get some sleep."

Venus curled up against her father and was asleep before they even left the room. 

 


	12. Chapter 12

 Something interesting was going on in Venus' home. Her family started making over her a lot more after she started talking. They weren't putting anymore pressure on her to talk and seemed happy with her. Her mother taught her to use the toilet rather quickly. Venus was happy not to walk around wet anymore. 

Her brothers and parents were actually strange. Don and her mother were spending a lot of time working on something. Her father had taken to hiding rolls of shiny paper in his room.

The craziness hit the fan when Uncle Casey brought a tree into their home. It wasn't even a real tree. At least Venus didn't think it was. It came out of box and was in three parts. 

Venus watched in confusion as Casey and Leo set the tree up. 

Had they lost their minds? Why were they putting that thing in their home?

Venus stood up and stuck one of her chew sticks in her mouth. She gave them a curious look.

"Hi there," Leo said as he stepped away from the tree. "I bet you're pretty confused?"

"You're in for a surprise tomorrow," Casey explained. "Your big brother is going to explain this whole thing."

"Go on and use the bathroom," the turtle instructed. "Then I'll explain it to you."

The young rat nodded and walked off to the bathroom. The turtle and man sat in silence a moment. Finally Casey let out a little chuckle. 

"Nice to see you getting into the whole big brother thing," Casey said digging into a box by the tree. 

"Venus is cute," Leo said sitting down on the couch. "She needs her brothers."

"How you feeling about Annie?" the man asked pulling out a string of Christmas lights.

Leonardo looked over his shoulder to make sure no one was around to hear him talk. Little Venus always took forever in the bathroom.

"I don't have to like her you know," Leo said. "I can accept her but I don't have to like her."

"Look," Casey said abandoning the box. "You have to go to stop being so unreasonable. You have an amazing family and you should be thankful for it."

"You don't know what you're talking about ," Leo started but Casey didn't let him finish.

"I do," the man said. "Look. I don't like talking about it but I've been where you've been. My Dad isn't my real Dad. I didn't even know him until I was five."

"What happened to your Dad?" Leo questioned.

"Took off," Casey explained. "One day he was there and the next he wasn't. I found out later that he went out for cigarettes and never came back."

Leo didn't know what to say. It wasn't like Casey to open up. He only did it when he felt it was pretty important. 

"When she started dating Brian I hated him," he explained. "But he grew on me. He treated me like his own. Pretty soon I thought of him as my real Dad and I was really happy when they got married."

"Did you ever look for your real Father?" Leo questioned. 

"Why?" Casey asked getting up. "I had the only one that ever really mattered."

Leonardo sat there is silence for a few moments. He watched his friend try to untangle Christmas lights. Maybe his friend was right. He would know his real mother. Annie was trying to be the best mother she could be. She never asked for anything.

"Uh!" Venus' voice caught his attention.

He looked over to see her standing next to the couch and looking at him. 

"Oh yes," he said waving for her to come over. 

 Venus smiled and climbed onto her brother's lap.

\--

The young rat normally took longer in the bathroom but she wanted to hear what the tree business was all about. She quickly took care of herself and left the bathroom.

She stopped when she heard Uncle Casey and Leo talking.

"How you feeling about Annie?"

Her brother quickly looked around the room. He seemed to be making sure he was alone. He must have missed her half hidden by a chair.

"I don't have to like her you know," Leo said. "I can accept her but I don't have to like her."

Venus didn't understand what she was hearing. Leo didn't like their mother? That didn't make sense. She was his mother too. Wasn't she? Mikey called her mom but only Mikey. Leo, Raph, and Don didn't call her mom. They called her Annie. 

She assumed it was something older people just did. After all they didn't always call their Dad "Dad". 

The young rat was seriously confused by all this. They were her brothers weren't they? 

Venus waited in the shadows until they were done talking. She decided not to think about it. Perhaps her brother was just confused. 

She walked over to her brother and was quickly welcomed into his lap.

"Alright," he said reaching for a book. "It's time for you to learn about Santa Clause."

The rat looked with interest at the book. On the front of the cover was a large man dressed in red feeding a strange looking creature.

"That's Santa and his reindeer," Leo explained. "He uses the reindeer to fly around the world."

Leonardo opened the book to reveal a picture of Santa flying on his sleigh with the reindeer. Venus reached forward and touched the page.

Casey smiled as he continued to unload the boxes of decorations.


	13. Chapter 13

Venus couldn't get enough of her new story book. Leo read it to her. Then she took it to her mother and father. They took turns reading the story to her. 

When her bed time came Venus ran to Mikey. Her parents and her other brothers always made sure she went to bed on time. Mikey was the only one who bent the rules. She found him sitting in the living room looking at the tree. 

"You want your story again?" he asked picking her up.

Venus nodded opening up the book.

"If I read it to you then you have to go right to bed," he explained. 

Again Venus nodded. 

"Alright then," Mikey said and then started to read the story.

-

Splinter chuckled as he watched his two children together. Venus looked so happy in her brother's lap. Her eyes were focused on the colorful pages. She was already so big. She was about the size of a two year old human child even then she was only two months old. Her long tail was in her hands. She was always fidgeting with it.

He was glad to see all his children getting along so well. Leonardo was so busy helping out with Venus that he didn't have time to fight with Raphael.  

The grown rat just wished Leonardo and Annie got along better. He knew Leo was trying his best. Perhaps his son just needed a little more time. At least he wasn't being rude to her. 

"Aren't they cute together?" Annie's voice filled his ears.

He looked to see her standing next to her. She had a smile on her face. She looked so happy. 

"She's going to love tomorrow," she said. "Everyone has worked so hard to make her first Christmas so special."

"I'm sorry your family can't be here," he said. "I know how hard this is for you."

"I miss them," she said with a shrug. "But I know they can't be here. I'm just going to try and be happy."

"Done," Mikey said closing the book. "You promised to go to bed. You have to be a good girl if you want Santa to come."

Venus nodded and climbed down from his lap. Still carrying her book she headed to her father. 

"Daddy!" she said holding her hands up. 

"Come on little one," he said. "To bed with you."

Venus curled up against him as he carried her into his bedroom. He wished the little one had a bed she would sleep in. He knew she didn't like sleeping in their bed. It was so crowed and his room wasn't dark enough for her. 

"Do you want to sleep with your book?" he asked as he put her under the covers.

She nodded and held it close to her chest. 

"That's fine with me," he said. "As long as you sleep. Goodnight little one."

Splinter tucked her in before heading for the door. Annie flicked off the lights and closed the door. The room was fairly dark. There were gaps around the door that let in light. Venus rolled away from the light. She was so tired and just wanted to sleep. It was only a few moments before she slipped into the world of dreams. 

\--

Leonardo fetched a hand full of gifts from his room and placed them under the tree. He noticed Annie standing next to the tree. His step-mother seemed lost in thought.

"Hey," he said. "Everything all right?"

"Yea," she said smiling a little. "It's just my first Christmas away from my family."

The turtle did know how she felt. During his time in South America he had missed his family very much. Spending Christmas away from them had really hurt. All he could think about was Mikey's face when he opened gifts. The youngest turtle loved Christmas. 

"I spent some time in South America," Leo explained. "Far too long. Being away was pretty hard."

For moment Leo forgot about his hostile feelings for her. She wasn't some bitch trying to steal his father away. She wasn't an annoyance. She was just a person looking for a place to belong. Why did he dislike her again?

"Look," he said. "I want you to know that you'll always have a home here. I know I haven't been very kind to you but I am trying. Even if you and Splinter ever split up you would still be part of this family. You'd still be....well....you'd still be my Mom."

Annie didn't know what to say. Was Leo finally accepting her as his mother? Mikey was the only one who called her mom but Donnie and Raph were very fond of her. They always listened to her and treated her with respect. 

She felt tears filling her eyes. She quickly cleaned them off with the sleeve of her shirt. 

"Hey," he said laughing a bit. "I'd thought you'd be happy."

"I am happy," she said smiling through the tears. "Thank you Leo."

Leo took his mother into his arm and gave her deep hug. She tried to get her tears under control as she leaned against him.

For the first time the oldest turtle finally understand why he was unwilling to accept Annie as his mother. Some where deep inside his mind he believed he would find his real mother. Of course, he knew the chances of that were extremely slim but that didn't stop him from thinking that. He needed to stop thinking about the mother he would never find and accept the one standing right in front of him. 

Once Annie got a hold of herself she pulled away from him.

"Thank you," she said again. "It means a lot of me."

"Get some sleep Annie," he said smiling at her. "We have a big day tomorrow."

Annie decided to give her son a little space and went off to bed. 


	14. Chapter 14

Venus was the first one awake on Christmas morning. She glanced at her sleeping parents. She decided to let them sleep a little while. They always seemed so tired. She walked over to the door and looked up at the knob. 

She had never tried to reach it on her own and wasn't sure she could. She stretched as much as she could and touched the knob. She let out a happy squeak as she turned the knob. 

The door slid open revealing the dim living room. The only light in the room was coming from the Christmas tree. There was no sign of her brothers anywhere. 

She decided to wake Leo up. He was the one who played with her the most. He wouldn't mind waking up. 

The young took a few steps down the hallway towards Leo's room. She though she knew which one it was. She wasn't in there often. 

She reached the first door and stretched to reach the knob. She turned it and fell into the room. She was relieved to see she got it right. Her oldest brother was lying in bed snoring. 

"Uh!" she grunted walking over to him.

Leo groaned at the noise but just rolled over. The young rat walked over to the bed and sat down the edge. She put her hand on her brother's leg and shook it. 

"Go away Mikey," Leo said waving her away. 

"Ah!" she cried again shaking him harder.

"Mikey," he said lifting his head. "I told you-"

He stopped when he saw his young sister. 

"Oh," he said smiling. "Hello little one."

Leo sat up and pulled his sister into his lap. She laughed and wrapped her tail about his arm. 

"I guess someone is excited?" Leo joked. "Alright. Let's get you some breakfast and then wake everyone up."

No matter how excited everyone was they always had a family breakfast before opening gifts. 

Venus wasn't against the idea. She was starving. 

Her brother stood and carried her into the kitchen. He tried to put her in her high chair but she wanted nothing to do with it. She was too big for that. She wanted to sit at the table with everyone else. 

"What's wrong?" he questioned.

Venus pointed at the table and chairs.

"You want to sit at the table?" he questioned. 

The young rat nodded. 

"Alright," he said. "Let me let up your booster seat so you can reach."

He sat Venus down in one of the kitchen chairs. The young rat watched as he took her high chair apart. He took off the seat and tray. With a little effort he fitted the seat to one of the kitchen chairs and strapped it in. 

"Here you go," he said placing her in the chair. "Better?"

Venus nodded and smiled. It was much better. 

"How about eggs, pancakes, and bacon?" he questioned. "Sound good."

The young rat liked the idea of that. Her brothers all knew how to cook. She hoped that they taught her when she was older.

 

\--

 

Splinter groaned as he felt his body waking up. He always felt tired. It always felt like he was short on sleep. He looked over at his lover. Annie was sleeping silently against him. 

He panicked for a second when he couldn't find Venus but then he heard his sons. He could hear them laughing and talking. No doubt they had her. 

He hated to wake Annie up but he knew she wouldn't want to miss Venus' first Christmas.

"Darling," he said. "Wake up."

Annie gave a grumble but opened her eyes. She looked around the bed. No doubt looking for Venus.

"I'm sure the boys have her," he said.

Annie sighed and relaxed against him. She gave a chuckle as Splinter began to play with her hair. He slept on the side of the bedside dresser that night. He reached over and dug into the draw. 

"Naughty boy," she said at the sound of the draw opening.

He found a new box of condoms. He opened it and carefully took one out. Handling them always made him feel nervous. His claws got in the way. He was worried he was putting small holes in them he couldn't see. 

With a little effort he opened the package and slipped it on. The spermicide lube came next. 

"You're an animal," she said lifting her leg. 

Splinter carefully slid into her. Annie let out a moan she closed her eyes. He was always so careful with her no matter how many times they made love. 

"Oh Annie," he said kissing her neck. "You feel amazing."

Annie ground back against him enjoying the feeling of him being inside of her. The feeling of his fur sent her hair on edge. It tickled in all the right ways. 

She knew he wasn't going to last long. He was starting to sped up. Quickly he was slamming into her as hard as he could. The bed shook a little under his motions. 

That's when she heard it. Snap. She could feel wetness leaking inside of her. He stopped moving.

"Damn," he said. "I think it broke. I'm sorry Annie."

"It's alright," she said. "It happens."

It had happened a few times on them. Annie guessed it was due to that shape of Splinter's cock. The condoms just didn't fit correctly but it was better than nothing.

Splinter pulled out of her. He grabbed the tissue box off the bedside table and tried to clean up the mess. 

"I am sorry," he said. "I know you don't want more children."

"Splinter it's alright," she said shaking her head. "Whatever happens I'm alright with it. We're taking steps to prevent it but sometimes it doesn't work. Don't fret about it."

Splinter smiled looking at her. She gave up so much to be with him. She bore his child and was willing to bare more. She was willing to devote everything to their family. Yet, it didn't seem fair. 

He opened his mouth to speak but Annie shook her head.

"Not today," she said kissing his noise. "We'll talk about this later."

Annie jumped out of bed and dressed herself. 

"Let's go enjoy Christmas with our family," she said giving him a warm smile.

\--

Splinter was happy to see his family sitting for breakfast. Leonardo had fixed a large breakfast. His little girl was sitting at the table with a face covered with syrup. 

"Dad!" she said pointed at him.

"That's right," he said sitting down next to her. 

"How about a mom?" Annie questioned her daughter.

Venus knew she would have to add the word in. She didn't want her mother to feel left out. She just hadn't gotten around to it yet.

The young rat was starting to get impatient as her family ate. She wanted to get around to the gift part of Christmas. 

"Uh!" she grunted looking at them.

"I know," Mikey said. "We're almost done. Just hold on a few more minutes."

Minutes! Minutes felt like hours to Venus.

She looked at Leo. Leo usually gave in to her demands. The blue clad turtle smiled and pat her on the head. 

"Muh!..." she said starting to get angry. 

She didn't like being ignored or being told to wait.

"I'll get her cleaned up," Raph said.

That surprised the others at the table. Raph liked the child but he didn't spend much time with her. It just wasn't his thing. 

Venus smiled as her older brother picked her up and carried her to the bathroom. The young rat didn't mind baths but she didn't like having her face washed. It just didn't feel right.

She decided to try and work with Raph. She didn't want to make things hard for him. Maybe for once she would just cooperate. 

 --

Venus couldn't believe the gifts she had received.  She had a few toys before but the pile under the tree was unbelievable. Her favorite was the toy "alligator" as her parents called it. 

Leatherhead. It was her friend leatherhead. So, he was an alligator after all. 

"We have a special surprise for you," Donnie said picking up his sister. 

Venus frowned. She wanted to stay and play with her toys but she was curious about the surprise. Her brother carried her to her room. 

The young rat jumped around in her brother's arms. She couldn't believe she was seeing. She had a new bed. 

The actual bed was lifted off the ground. There was a play area under neath half blocked with a curtain. Venus could see a rug with pillows. The actual bed had a tent on top that was opened. A ladder on the side of the bed was the way up. There was a side rail so she wouldn't fall off.

"Uh!" Venus cried.

"Like it?" Don questioned.

He put his sister down and she ran over to the bed. She quickly climbed the ladder up to her bed. She flopped down onto the mattress.

"You can close the tent," Don said showing her how. "Are you can leave it open."

Venus was so happy. The bed was perfect. She could sleep up high or down low. She could block off all light and feel safe in her little area.

"Ta..." she started to say. "Tanks ya Don."

"What did you say?" Donnie asked in shock. "Did you say Thank you Don?"

Venus wasn't going to repeat it. She simply nodded.

"Wow," he said kissing her head. "You're an amazing kid."

Venus quickly climbed down from her bed. She hurried out to the living room. She wanted to move her toys into her room. 

"At least she'll be sleeping in her own room," Don explained as he walked back to the living room.

"Good," Annie said. "I love her but she is a kicker."

Annie smiled. It seemed as if everything was starting to come together. She just hoped it would last. 

 

 


	15. Chapter 15

A few days later Annie had the classifieds open and was trying to find something she could do. She was technically still a missing person but she needed to find a way around that. She didn't want her mother to find out where she was. There would be too many questions to answer.

Leo found her sitting at the table going through the paper.

"Any luck?" he questioned pouring himself to drink.

"No idea," she said. "I need to find a place that won't ask too many questions about who I am."

"Maybe you should do what Mikey did," Leo suggested sitting down across from her. "He started his party business."

"Start a business?" she questioned. "I don't know much about that."

"Either did Mikey," Leo said with a shrug. "Don did most of the business work."

"I guess," she said closing the paper.

Leo noticed his mother looked pale and tired. No doubt she was stressing herself out.

"Look," he said taking the paper. "Don't worry. You're making yourself sick. We'll figure it out. You help out around here more than you know."

Annie had to admit Leo was right. She was worrying herself sick. She didn't feel well at all. All she could think about was helping the family out.

"No!" Venus was yelling.

It seemed she was adding a new word every day or so.

"Come on," Don said. "It'll only take a minute."

Annie turned to see what all the fuss was about. Venus was standing in the living room dressed in her pjs with her hands on her head. Don was kneeling down in front of her.

"Just one little look?" he questioned.

"No!" she cried shaking her head.

"What's going on?" Annie questioned.

"She'll pulling at her left ear really bad," Don explained. "I think she might have an ear infection. I just need to look."

Annie walked over to her daughter. The little one was pulling at her ear and crying.

"Come to mommy," she said picking Venus up. "Does your ear hurt?"

Venus nodded. It did hurt but she didn't want anyone messing with it. Annie walked over to the couch and sat down.

"I know you don't want anyone to touch it," her mother said. "But if you don't let Don look it could get worse."

The young rat shook her head. She didn't want to get worse but she didn't want her brother looking either.

"I have an idea," Leo said before digging into a kitchen cabinet.

A few moments later he walked over holding a small piece of chocolate. Venus' eye lit up at the sight of the chocolate. She wasn't normally allowed chocolate.

"Let Don look," he said holding up the treat. "And you get this."

Oh wow. A little discomfort for some chocolate. It was worth it. She quickly nodded. Donnie didn't waste any time sitting down next to his sister. He lifted her ear and peered inside with a flashlight.

"Yep," he said. "It's just starting but it's infected for sure."

Venus held her hand out for the chocolate as soon as Don moved out of the way. Leo handed it to her and she quickly ate it.

"We should be able to get some antibiotics at the pet store," he said. "I'll do some research and see just how much we need."

Don quickly headed of to his lab.

"Thanks," Annie said to Leo. "That was quick thinking. My poor baby has an ear infection."

"No problem," the blue clad turtle said. "Mikey used to get them all the time."

Annie sighed as she pulled her little one in for a hug. She was happy that Leo was being more accepting of her and Venus.

"No," Annie said. "I mean it. You've been such a big help."

"When your the oldest child you have to learn how not to take things personally," he explained. "I guess it took me longer to remember this time."

\--

Venus didn't want to stay in bed. After finding out she had an ear infection her mother wanted her to rest. She had taken a little nap but she really wasn't tired.

After a while of failing to fall back to sleep Venus climbed down out of bed. She walked out the living room to find it empty.

She could hear her parents talking in their bedroom. Her brothers were in their training room making all kinds of noise. That was a room Venus wasn't allowed in yet.

She needed an adventure. Christmas had been great but that seemed forever ago. Her father was planning to take her to the park soon but that hadn't happened due to rain. No doubt her ear infection would push it back even more. That fustrated her to no end.

Venus walked over to the dojo and peaking inside. She smiled at the sight. Her brothers were jumping around. They were each holding a weapon and charging at each other.

Venus wondered when she would be allowed to join them. She wondered what weapon she would take. She liked the stick Don used but the sword was cool too.

"Don!" Venus cried.

Don glanced at her in surprise. That gave Raph an opening. He quickly took the other turtle down to the ground.

"Cheat!" Don said playfully hitting his back with his bo.

"There are distractions in the real world," Raph said with a snort.

"What are you doing?" Leo asked walking over to the little one. "You aren't allowed in here."

Venus looked down at the floor. Her body was still in the living room. She hadn't stepped over the line yet.

"No," Venus said pointing to the floor.

"Takes after you Raph," Mikey said laughing. "She has to push the rules."

"She is getting big enough to start training," Raph said. "We were tiny."

"That's up to Dad," Leo said picking her up. "He'll know when she's ready."

"He babies her," the red clad turtle said. "We might need to remind him she needs to learn."

Venus nodded. She liked that idea. Her brother knew what he was talking about.

"Maybe," her oldest brother said. "I'll talk to him about it when Venus is feeling better. I'll see if I can't get her back to sleep."

Venus clug to her brother as he carried her back to bed. She hoped that she would feel better soon.


	16. Chapter 16

The first thing Donnie did the next day was call April and ask her to pick up the medicine. He wanted to get it into her as soon as possible.

After making the call he went into the kitchen to get some breakfast. He found Splinter trying to get Venus to eat some breakfast.

"Come on," he said offering her a bite of pancake. "Try a little."

Venus didn't want food. Her ear had really started hurting when she woke up. Her mother had given her some medicine right away. It helped the pain but it made her feel tired and grumpy.

"No," Venus cried pushing the fork away. 

"I don't blame her," Don said. "Poor little thing is sick for the first time."

"I know," Splinter said frowning at her. 

Splinter knew it was useless. It just hurt him to see his daughter so upset. He hated to see any of his children suffer. 

"Let's go watch television," Splinter said picking her up. "Maybe that will relax you. We can eat later."

Venus liked the idea. She just wanted to sit with her father and watch tv. He carried her over to the couch and sat down with her. The young rat curled up against her and yawned. 

"I'll get her a blanket," Don offered. 

The tech turtle walked into his sister's bedroom and retrieved one of her blankets. He returned to his father and placed the blanket over her. She grumbled and pulled it tight around her.

\--

Annie needed to get out of the lair. She needed to look around for work. She just couldn't sit around the lair and wait for things to get done.

She walked out to the living room to find her husband and child cuddling.

"I won't be gone long," she said. "If you need me call."

"We'll be fine," Splinter said with a laugh. "Take all the time you need."

Annie gave him a goodbye kiss and headed out of the lair. Truth be told she was happy he was alright with her taking some away time. She loved him and the family but sometimes she needed space.

She walked to the nearest sewer grate and made the climb up. The sudden light hurt her eyes. Despite the fact it was still only January it was sunny outside.

The cooler air hit her at once. She was used to the warm temperatures of the sewer. She pulled her jacket tight around her.

She glanced around the empty ally. She had no idea what she was going to do. Her plan was to speak to a few homeless people. She guessed they would know how to earn a little money. 

She stepped out onto the main street and started walking. The noise and movement was slightly overwhelming. 

After a few minutes she noticed a woman struggling to clean off her front steps. She looked frustrated and was struggling with the shovel.

"Excuse me," Annie said walking over. "Could you use some help?"

The woman looked at Annie quickly. For a second she looked angry but then the look softened.

"Looking for work?" the woman questioned.

"Yes," she said. "Five kids at home. One is only three months."

"Lots of people out of work," the woman said. "It's been a rough year for everyone."

Annie noticed the woman stopped shoving and looked down at the tool in her hand.

"My name is Jenny. My husband is out of town for work," she said. "I'll give you a ten spot to clean my steps."

"Thank you," Annie said as the woman tossed her the shovel.

The woman said nothing before disappearing into her home.  Annie went right to work. Her back hurt almost right away. She wasn't used to manual labor. Each shovel full hurt to toss but she was determined to do it. 

It really didn't take the long and it meant money in her pocket. She knocked on the door when she was done. 

"Oh," the woman said looking at the clean steps. "Thank you a lot."

She smiled at the work Annie had done. She fished in her pocket and pulled out a ten dollar bill. She handed it to Annie. Annie let out a sigh of relief as she slipped the money into her pocket.

"I hope you find work," Jenny said. "I wish I could give you more."

"It's alright," Annie said. "Every little bit helps."

Annie leaned the shovel against the house and walked down the stairs. She wouldn't be doing too badly if she could find more work like that. 

It was then that she noticed she was following her. She glanced over she shoulder to see a woman a few steps behind her. She was dressed in all black and was wearing a large coat. Annie turned her head forward and tried not to think about the stranger.

"Hello," a soft female voice said.

Annie glanced over to see the woman was walking next to her.

"Hi," she said back quickly.

"Annie?" the stranger questioned. "The rat's wife?"

"Who are you?" Annie demanded and stopped in her tracks.

The strange woman stopped walking and looked straight at her. Even though she was on a crowed street Annie felt like she was in danger.

"My name is not important," she said. "But I do have a message for you. Keeps those turtles away. I have plans and I don't want them stepping in the way."

"Are you....with the foot?" Annie questioned.

"I am the foot," she said with a snort. "I'm trying to get things back up and running. I don't need those...turtles in the way."

"They'll do what they have to," Annie said. "You know that."

"I would never harm a defenseless woman or an infant," she said. "I want you to know that. But by being with them you are putting yourself at risk. Sometimes innocent people get caught in the cross fire."

"Stay away from all of them," Annie growled. "Venus and I are going to learn to fight. We'll going to stand right next to them."

"That is your decision," she said. 

Without another word the stranger walked off and disappeared among the crowd.

\--

Four hours later Annie was dead on her feet. She had shoved snow a few times. She collected a bag of bottles and turned them in for some change. 

She sat down in front of a star bucks and drank a cup of coffee. All together she had made fifty bucks. Not bad for a days work. She knew not every day would be like that. 

She bought two large loaded pizzas and headed back home. She climbed down the grate and started the walk home.

She felt so tired and yet she didn't feel like she had accomplished anything. She had paid for dinner for everyone and had some money in her pocket. Yet, it didn't feel like enough.

Annie opened the door to the lair and walked inside. There was no sign of anyone around.

"Pizza!" she called.

She knew that would bring them.

Of course it did.

"Food!" Mikey called.

The orange clad turtle rushed in and took a seat at the table. Don, Raph, and Leo quickly followed and took their places.

"Where is Splinter and Venus?" Annie questioned getting herself a plate.

"She's having a bath," Leo explained. 

Annie sat down and started eating. She knew there would be plenty for everyone. 

"I see work went fine," Leo said nodding towards the pizza.

"Yea," Annie said. "But something strange happened today. I met one of your enemies."

"Who?" Don asked suddenly getting worried.

"Some girl," Annie explained. "She said she was the foot. She was just warning me about the danger of hanging out with you guys."

"I was worried about that," Leo said. "I knew they wouldn't be silent forever."

"I'll be fine," she explained. "I can take of myself."

Annie heard a door opening. She looked up to see Splinter carrying a sleepy Venus out of the bathroom.

"Mom!" she cried seeing Annie.

"Hi baby," she said holding out her hands. "Come to mommy."

Splinter handed her the sleepy child and sat down at the table.

"April brought her medicine," Raph said. "She was sad she missed you. She wants you two to hang out sometime."

"That would be nice," she said helping her little one eat some pizza. "I haven't hung out with her in ages."

 Annie was starving. She never one to eat much but she sure her day of activity had worn her out. She noticed no one else brought up her encounter to Splinter. Perhaps it was best to keep it a secret for a while.


	17. Chapter 17

Splinter knew the day was coming but he wasn't ready for it. Annie wanted to know how to fight. She did need to know. Splinter knew that. What if the foot attacked? She needed to know how to defend herself. 

"We start with a wooden sword," Splinter said handing her the weapon. "Carrying around a weapon all the time is hard. They're very heavy. You'll need to learn how to carry the weight."

Annie couldn't imagine carrying around Leo's sword all the time. The wooden one felt heavy enough in her arm.

"Just get used to swinging it," Splinter said. "The motion shouldn't feel stressed. It should be natural."

"What if this isn't weapon?" Annie asked as she tried to swing the wooden sword.

"It's very similar to a bo at this stage," the rat explained. "It took the boys ages to figure out what worked for them."

Learning how to roll with the sword in the hand without smacking herself in the face was a struggle.

After an hour of practice Annie found herself tired beyond belief. How could the boys do it for hours?

"You need to do weight training," Splinter pointed out. "Raphael enjoys during that. Perhaps he would work with you. It's easier when you are with someone else."

"I guess I can talk to him," Annie said with. "He seems to like me enough."

"Go drink some water," Splinter said with a little laugh. "You look very worn."

Splinter and Annie walked out of the dojo. Annie went right to kitchen to get some water. She filled a cup before dropping into a chair.

She looked over to see Splinter in the living room. He was sitting down next to Venus. She seemed to be feeling a little better. She was smiling and laughing. 

Worry gripped Annie's heart. What if they came for Venus? She felt so safe when she was near Splinter and the turtles. She knew nothing could hurt her or Venus then. Yet, she knew she couldn't keep Venus locked up forever. One day her little one would see the world. She would fight beside her brothers. She would look death in the face. Annie knew it wasn't a matter of "if" it was a matter of "when." She just hoped her baby would be strong enough when the day finally came.

 

_

 

I know a short chapter but the next part should be up in a matter of seconds. I plan on this being a long series of stories. I write these for my own fun during "down time". I'm happy if they bring joy to one person. :)

 


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